Death related purchases are usually very significant and often may constitute the third largest purchase made by a family next to the purchase of a home and the purchase of a car. Many attempts have been made in the past to reduce the expense of the bereavement and burial process without detracting from the dignity of the process. One such attempt has involved the use of a so-called casket surround which comprises a very elaborate casket which surrounds a separate relatively inexpensive fiberglass vault. During the viewing process, the corpse is placed in the base of the vault and the vault is positioned within the casket surround. The casket surround is removed before burial so that only the relatively inexpensive fiberglass vault is buried and the relatively expensive casket surround may be used over and over again. This arrangement preserves the dignity of the bereavement and burial process and has resulted in a significant reduction in the total cost involved. However, whereas the casket surround system has proven to be very successful in reducing costs, the presently available casket surround assemblies have certain disadvantages. Specifically, since the construction of the prior art surround systems do not allow the lid of the casket surround to be closed after the lid of the vault has been sealed to the base of the vault, either the casket surround must be left at the funeral home with the result that the remainder of the service is conducted with the relatively unattractive fiberglass vault or, if the surround is taken to the cemetery, the final sealing operation, where the lid of the vault is sealed to the base of the vault, must be performed at the cemetery where weather conditions may be unsatisfactory and where discreet control of the mourners may be much more difficult than in the controlled environment of the funeral home. Further, even though the prior art casket surround systems have reduced costs considerably, the casket surround itself continues itself to be a very high initial cost item and a very high maintenance item.